Growth opportunity: The Lincoln MKT concept shows a new potential
vehicle for Lincoln, demonstrating the brands new design language
works as well on a spacious luxury utility vehicle as it does luxury
sedans like the new 2009 Lincoln MKS.

Responsible luxury: The Lincoln MKT concept reaches a new level of
responsible luxury with the use of more environmentally friendly
materials that offer a premium look and feel.
DETROIT, Jan. 14, 2008 Lincoln today pulls the wraps off a new
premium utility concept vehicle unsurpassed in its balance of
spaciousness, comfort and fuel efficiency that shows customers a
new way to tour in style.

The Lincoln MKT concept features a 3.5-liter V-6 EcoBoost engine
with turbocharging and direct injection that produces the power and
torque of a V-8 engine with the fuel efficiency of a V-6. EcoBoost
combined with advanced transmissions, electric power steering,
weight reductions and aerodynamic improvements is a key part of
Ford Motor Companys vehicle sustainability strategy.

The company is introducing EcoBoost engines that will deliver up to
20 percent better fuel economy on half a million Ford, Lincoln and
Mercury vehicles annually in North America within the next five
years. Ford will first introduce EcoBoost in the Lincoln MKS next
year. The luxury sedan will feature a 3.5-liter twin-turbocharged
V-6, delivering an estimated 340-horsepower and more than 340
lb.-ft. of torque on regular gas.

EcoBoost engines can deliver better fuel economy and performance on
a full range of vehicles, from small cars to large trucks, said
Mark Fields, president of The Americas. The Lincoln MKT concept
offers the comfort of a luxury sedan, the spaciousness and
flexibility of a full-size utility and the performance of a sporty
roadster executed with new technologies and materials that make it
as environmentally friendly as it is elegant.

The Lincoln MKT concept is understated but powerful inside,
outside and under the hood.

Premium Efficiency

The Lincoln MKT concept
features an EcoBoost engine thats flex-fuel capable, providing the
driver with the flexibility to switch back and forth between premium
gasoline and E85 ethanol-gas blend. Burning these high-octane fuels,
the MKT concepts V-6 engine delivers 415 horsepower and 400
pound-feet of torque an impressive 118 horsepower per liter.

The concepts engine is mated to a six-speed transmission for
greater fuel efficiency. Fuel efficiency also is helped by
weight-saving, eco-friendly upcycled materials from SABIC
Innovative Plastics.

Two upcycled plastic materials, Valox iQ and Xenoy iQ, were used in
making the Lincoln MKT body panels, energy absorbers, wire bundles
andglazing. The resins are made from discarded soft-drink bottles
and other polyester waste, keeping them out of landfills, reducing
energy consumption and shrinking the vehicles overall carbon
footprint.

Some applications of the resin help the vehicle resist heat and
chemicals and also improve overall noise and vibration.

Spacious Elegance

Drivers and passengers
alike will appreciate the Lincoln MKT concepts spaciousness right
down to the seats that mirror those found in first-class aircraft
cabins. Four executive-sized chairs offer comfort and unprecedented
leg room. As an added pleasure, second-row heated and cooled thigh
supports deploy from under the seats, while footrests deploy
rearward from the front seats, allowing passengers to fully recline.

We envisioned this concept as a modern grand tourer, really a
Learjet of the road, said Peter Horbury, executive director of
Design, The Americas. With the Lincoln MKT concept, you find a
premium utility that could as easily accommodate a businessperson
slipping into the back seat on the way to his or her next meeting in
the chaos of Manhattan as a family packed up for a weekend getaway
to the coast.

The vehicles symmetrical interior design divides the cabin
thoughtfully, providing all four passengers equal access to the
vehicles appointments.

Through the use of soothing tone-on-colors, eco-friendly materials,
ambient lighting and flexible storage, the MKT concept offers
customers a unique combination of serenity and connectivity.

Environmentally friendly details include the plush, hand-knotted rug
made from banana silk that covers the floor and complements the
contrasting Creamy Pearl chromium-free leather seats.

Elsewhere in the interior, chrome accents including a one-piece
sculpted door handle featuring a baroque-influenced graphic mirror
the elegant lines on the concepts exterior.

For the center stack, designers invented and patented a solid-state
lighting technology that allows them to project onto a contoured
surface in 3-D. Until now, all projection was limited to flat
surfaces with square or rectangular boundaries like a flat-screen
television.

This new technology allowed designers to use non-traditional shapes
and spaces for information displays as well as unique storage spaces
in the center stack.

The expansive instrument panel and twin-level center console,
finished in a reconstituted oak veneer, houses an assortment of
technologies, including an instrument cluster inspired by Swarovski
crystals. It uses Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) strategically
positioned so light appears to emanate from the center of three
circular dials and radiate to the outer edge of the dials.

The MKT concepts center console, which runs the entire length of
the vehicle to create a feeling of continuity between the upper and
lower portion of the cabin, contains individual air vents, audio and
climate controls, and personal storage.

In addition, a flat screen deploys from a floating overhead console
which also hides two small cameras, each aimed at one of rear seats
to provide on-screen conference calling.

In the rear cargo area, a smart space behind the second-row seats
provides additional storage. Designers also included a power lift
system that raises and lowers a series of rails behind the rear
seats to allow flat-load or compartmentalized storage.

Lincolns timeless design on a
whole new package

The Lincoln MKT concept
features Lincolns signature double-wing chrome grille,
encapsulating LED headlamps that wrap around into the sculptured
hood, lending the luxury utility a powerful presence.

Its elegant body side chamfer runs along the shoulder, with dynamic
haunches over the rear wheel arches. Inset into each front fender
and traveling through the door panels are chrome Lincoln stars with
spears that add visual length to the car. Meanwhile, winged,
curb-clearing doors give the car a dramatic sense of direction,
agility and forward movement.

A substantial C-pillar creates an aura of privacy for the rear
occupants. Like limousines, the MKT cuts an interesting profile
long, low and comfortably wide. The signature roofline runs the
entire length of the greenhouse and remains uninterrupted. The roof
itself is glass, allowing in natural light.

As an unconventional surprise, designers incorporated a bustle-back
design into the concept.